Stepless height adjusting apparatus

ABSTRACT

A stepless height adjusting apparatus includes a slider, a slide way, and an elastic supporting device. The slider is an axial symmetry bar. The axial symmetry bar has a larger cross section perpendicular to the axis thereof on the top portion and a smaller cross section perpendicular to the axis thereof on the bottom portion so as to form an incline on the side surface. The slider couples to the slide way to move on the slide way. The elastic supporting device is disposed on the top portion of the slide way to support the slider with balance forces between the elastic supporting device and the incline of the slider. When an external force is pushing the slider, the slider may move along the slide way. When the external force is removed, the slider may stop at a determined position on the slide way by the balance force.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is based on, and claims priority from, Taiwan Application Serial Number 94102375, filed Jan. 26, 2005, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a height adjusting apparatus and, in particular, to a stepless height adjusting apparatus.

2. Related Art

As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional height adjusting device of a thin display apparatus is comprised of a slider 100′, a slide way 200′, a coil spring 300′ and a base 500′. The thin display apparatus is installed on a coupling portion 120′ of the slider 100′. A user imposes a force on the thin display apparatus to adjust the height of the thin display apparatus. After the force is removed, a weight of the thin display apparatus and the slider 100′ is equal to a sum of an elastic force of the coil spring 300′ and a friction between the slider 100′ and a sliding sleeve 210′ on the slide way 200′. Therefore, the slider 100′ can stop at any position on the slide way 200′. The weight of the thin display apparatus is invariant. However, the friction between the slider 100′ and the sliding sleeve 210′ on the slide way 200′ and the elastic force of the coil spring 300′ vary with time, adjusting frequency, temperature, and climate. Once the coil spring 300′ is subject to elastic fatigue, or the friction between the slider 100′ and the sliding sleeve 210′ changes, it is difficult to achieve a balance of the forces to maintain the height of the thin display apparatus. Moreover, a replacement of the coil spring 300′ is time-consuming and inconvenient.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the invention is to provide a stepless height adjusting apparatus that uses an elastic supporting device in place of a coil spring to achieve a stepless height adjustment.

Another object of the invention is to provide a stepless height adjusting apparatus that can used for all kinds of devices with different weights to adjust the height of the devices by simply adjusting the angle and/or elastic force of an elastic supporting device.

A further object of the invention is to provide a stepless height adjusting apparatus that can be readily disassembled.

To achieve the above objects, the disclosed stepless height adjusting apparatus includes a slider, a slide way, and an elastic supporting device. The slider is an axially symmetric bar. A cross section of the bar in a top portion is larger than a cross section of the bar in a bottom portion so as to form an incline on a side surface of the slider. The cross sections are perpendicular to an axis of the slider. Therefore, the side surface inclines from the top portion to the bottom portion of the slider. The slider couples to the slide way to move on the slide way. The elastic supporting device is disposed on the top portion of the slide way to support the slider by a way of a balanced force between the elastic supporting device and the incline of the slider. The elastic supporting device includes two fixing bases and two supporting frames. The fixing bases are disposed respectively on two sides of the top portion of the slide way. Each fixing base contains a pivotal point and an angle adjusting groove. One end of the supporting frame is coupled to the pivotal point and the supporting frame wiggles about the pivotal point. The supporting frame contains a pushing rod, a spring, and a fixing device. The pushing rod is disposed on the top portion of the supporting frame. The spring is coupled between the pushing rod and the supporting frame. The spring provides a predetermined elastic force to the pushing rod to support the slider by a front end of the pushing rod. The fixing device is disposed on the other end of the supporting frame and coupled to the angle adjusting groove. The angle between the elastic supporting device and the slider is determined by the coupling position of the fixing device and the angle adjusting groove, thereby adjusting component forces of the pushing rod in the direction along the incline of the slider and the horizontal direction.

When an external force is pushing the slider, the slider moves along the slide way. When the external force is removed, the slider stops at a determined position by a balanced force between the elastic supporting device and the incline of the slider. Thus, the present invention achieves the object of stepless height adjustment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent by reference to the following description and accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the invention, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a conventional height adjusting apparatus;

FIG. 2 shows a side view and a top view of the disclosed stepless height adjusting apparatus of the present invention;

FIG. 3A is a schematic view showing the directions of gravity and friction of the height adjusting apparatus of the present invention;

FIG. 3B is a schematic view showing balance of forces of the present invention; and

FIG. 3C is a schematic view showing a state of a device moved by an external force.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

As shown in FIG. 2, a disclosed stepless height adjusting apparatus includes a slider 100, a slide way 200, and an elastic supporting device 300.

The slider 100 is an axially symmetric bar. A cross section of the bar in a top portion is larger than a cross section of the bar in the bottom portion so as to form an incline on a side surface of the slider 100, and the cross sections are perpendicular to an axis of the slider. The side surface of the slider 100 is thus an incline surface from the top portion to the bottom portion of the slider 100. The slider 100 contains a coupling base 120 for coupling to a device, such as a thin display apparatus. The height of the device is adjusted by the stepless height adjusting apparatus.

The slide way 200 is coupled to the slider 100 for moving thereon. The slide way 200 contains a sliding sleeve 210 between the slide way 200 and the slider 100 for the slider 100 to move smoothly.

The elastic supporting device 300 is disposed on the top portion of the slide way 200 and contains two fixing bases 310 and two supporting frames 320. The fixing bases 310 are disposed respectively on the two sides of the top portion of the slide way 200. Each fixing base 310 contains a pivotal point 311 and an angle adjusting groove 312.

One end of the supporting frame 320 is coupled to the pivotal point 311 and the supporting frame 320 wiggles about the pivotal point 311. The supporting frame 320 contains a pushing rod 331, a spring 332, and a fixing device 322. The pushing rod 331 is disposed on the top portion of the supporting frame 320. The spring 332 is coupled between the pushing rod 331 and the supporting frame 320. The spring 332 provides the pushing rod 331 with a predetermined elastic force, so that a front end of the pushing rod 331 supports the slider 100. The pushing rod 331 contains a roller 333 disposed on the front end of the pushing rod 331. The motion between the slider 100 and the pushing rod 331 is smooth. The fixing device 322 is disposed on the other end of the supporting frame 320 and coupled to the angle adjusting groove 312. The angle between the elastic supporting device 300 and the slider 100 is determined by the position of the fixing device 322 coupled to the angle adjusting groove 312, thereby adjusting the component forces of the pushing rod 331 in the direction along the incline of the slider and the horizontal direction.

The disclosed stepless height adjusting apparatus includes a base 500 coupled to the bottom of the slide way 200 to increase a stability of the apparatus as it stands.

When an external force is applied to adjust the height of the slider 100, the slider 100 moves along the slide way 200. When the external force is removed, the slider 100 stops at a determined position by a balanced force between the elastic supporting device 300 and the incline of the slide 100 to achieve stepless height adjustment.

As shown in FIG. 3A, when a device 900 such as a thin display apparatus is installed on the coupling base 120, the slider 100 moves downward due to the gravity F1 of the slider 100 and the device 900. An upward friction F2 is generated between the slider 100 and the sliding sleeve 210 of the slide way 200 as the slider 100 moves downward.

As shown in FIG. 3B, F2 counteracts by F1 to form a downward gravity (F1−F2). This gravity can be decomposed into a component force F3 in the direction along the incline of the slider and a component force F4 in the horizontal direction. The elastic force imposed by the spring on the pushing rod can also be decomposed into a component force F5 in the direction along the incline of the slider 100 and a component force F6 in the horizontal direction. When the component force F3 of the gravity (F1−F2) is equal to the component force F5 and the horizontal component force F4 is equal to the component force F6, a static balance is reached to stop the slider 100 and the device 900.

As shown in FIG. 3C, an external force F7 is applied to move the slider 100 and the device 900 upward or downward. Since the external force F7 breaks the static balance, the slider 100 and the device 900 are moved upward or downward along the slide way 200. Once the external force F7 is removed, the forces are balanced again. Therefore, the slider 100 and the device 900 stop at a determined position to achieve stepless height adjustment.

In FIG. 3C, the external force F7 is the upward external force to lift the device 900. However, if F7 is a downward external force, then the component force F8 of (F1−F2+F7) along the incline of the slider is greater than F5. In this case, the device 900 is moved downward by F7.

The above description only refers to a part of the slider 100 and the corresponding elastic supporting device 300. Since the stepless height adjusting apparatus is axially symmetric, the above explanation is sufficient to understand a relation between the symmetric slider and the corresponding elastic supporting device.

To support all kinds of devices with different weights, the angle between the elastic supporting device 300 and the slider 100 is determined by adjusting the coupling position of the fixing device 322 and the angle adjusting groove 312. The range of the angle is between 0 degree and 90 degrees. When the pushing rod is upward and parallel to the incline of the slider 100, the angle is 0 degree. When the pushing rod 331 pushes the slider 100 to become perpendicular to the incline of the slider 100, the angle is 90 degrees. Thereby, the component forces of the pushing rod 331 in the direction along the incline of the slider 100 and the horizontal direction can be adjusted. The smaller the angle between the elastic supporting device 300 and the slider 100 is, the large component force in the direction along the incline of the slider 100 is and the smaller the horizontal component force is, so that this is used for the heavy devices. On the other hand, the larger the angle between the elastic supporting device 300 and the slider 100 is, the smaller the component force in the direction along the incline of the slider 100 is and the larger the horizontal component force is, so that this is used for lighter devices. When the angle is 0 degree, the pushing rod 331 does not push and support the slider 100. When the angle is greater than 90 degrees, the elastic force of the spring 332 has a downward component along the incline of the slider 100, which is the same direction as the gravity of the device 900 and the slider 100. In this case, the gravity of the device 900 and the slider 100 are not balanced. Therefore, the angle between the slider 100 and the elastic supporting device 300 of the present invention is preferably between 0 and 90 degrees. The elastic supporting apparatus 300 can be replaced by a stronger spring 332 to support heavier devices that the original spring 332 cannot support.

Various kinds of modifications can be made to the disclosed embodiments without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, the incline of the slider 100 can be made into a curved surface, in accord with the properties of the spring 332. As long as the balanced force situation can be achieved between the elastic supporting device 300 and the slider 100, then different shapes of devices can be used. All such variations should be included within the scope of the invention.

From the above-mentioned embodiments, that the invention has the following advantages:

-   -   1. An elastic supporting device replaces the coil spring to         achieve stepless height adjustment and solves the problems in a         coil spring type of height adjusting apparatus.     -   2. 2. The angle and/or the elastic force of the elastic         supporting device can be easily adjusted to support all kinds of         devices with different weights.     -   3. The disclosed stepless height adjusting apparatus can be         readily assembled or disassembled for the convenience of device         replacement and maintenance.

Although the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternative embodiments, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claims will cover all modifications that fall within the true scope of the invention. 

1. A stepless height adjusting apparatus, comprising: a slider having an axially symmetric bar, a cross section of the axially symmetric bar in a top portion being greater than a cross section of the axially symmetric bar in a bottom portion to form an incline on a side surface of the slider, and the cross sections being perpendicular to an axis of the slider; a slide way coupling to the slider for the slider to move along the slide way; and an elastic supporting device, disposed on one end of the slide way so that a balanced force between the elastic supporting device and the incline of the slider supports the slider; wherein the slider moves along the slide way under an external force and, once the external force is removed, the slider stops at a determined position due to the balanced forces between the elastic supporting device and the incline of the slider.
 2. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the elastic supporting device comprises: at least one fixing base disposed on a side of the slide way and the fixing base comprising a pivotal point and an angle adjusting groove; and at least one supporting frame coupled to the pivotal point by one end of the supporting frame and wiggled about the pivotal point, the supporting frame comprising: a pushing rod disposed on one end of the supporting frame; a spring coupled between the pushing rod and the supporting frame to provide the pushing rod with a predetermined elastic force for the pushing rod supporting the slider; and a fixing device disposed on the other end of the supporting frame and coupled to the angle adjusting groove, wherein an angle between the elastic supporting device and the slider is determined by the coupling position of the fixing device and the angle adjusting groove, thereby adjusting component forces of the pushing rod in the direction along the incline of the slider and the horizontal direction.
 3. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 2, wherein the pushing rod comprises a roller disposed at the end of the pushing rod for the slider and the pushing rod to slide smoothly.
 4. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the slide way comprises a sliding sleeve between the slide way and the slider for the slider to slide smoothly.
 5. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the slider comprises a device coupling base disposed on the slider to couple to a device thereby adjusting the height of the device by the stepless height adjusting apparatus.
 6. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the incline is a curved surface.
 7. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a base coupled to the bottom of the slide way to increase a stability of the stepless height adjusting apparatus.
 8. A stepless height adjusting apparatus, comprising: a slider having an axially symmetric bar, a cross section of the axially symmetric bar in a top portion being greater than a cross section of axially symmetric bar in a bottom portion to form an incline on the side surface of the slider, and the cross sections being perpendicular to an axis of the slider; a slide way coupling to the slider to move on the slide way; and an elastic supporting device, disposed on one end of the slide way so that a balanced force between the elastic supporting device and the slider supports the slider and the elastic supporting device comprising: at least one fixing base disposed on a side of the slide way and including a pivotal point and an angle adjusting groove; and at least one supporting frame coupled to the pivotal point by the one end of the supporting frame and wiggled about the pivotal point, the supporting frame comprising: a pushing rod disposed on one end of the supporting frame; a spring coupled between the pushing rod and the supporting frame to provide the pushing rod with a predetermined elastic force for the pushing rod to support the slider; and a fixing device disposed on the other end of the supporting frame and coupled to the angle adjusting groove, wherein an angle between the elastic supporting device and the slider is determined by the coupling position of the fixing device and the angle adjusting groove, thereby adjusting the component forces of the pushing rod in the direction along the incline of the slider and the horizontal direction;  wherein the slider moves along the slide way under an external force, once the external force is removed, the slider stops at a determined position due to the balanced forces between the elastic supporting device and the incline of the slider.
 9. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 8, wherein the pushing rod comprises a roller disposed at one end of the pushing rod for the slider and the pushing rod to slide smoothly.
 10. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 8, wherein the slide way comprises a sliding sleeve between the slide way and the slider for the slider to slide smoothly.
 11. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 8, wherein the slider comprises a coupling base disposed on the slider to couple to a device, thereby adjusting the height of the device by the stepless height adjusting apparatus.
 12. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 8, wherein the incline is a curved surface.
 13. The stepless height adjusting apparatus of claim 8, further comprising a base coupled to the bottom of the slide way to increase a stability of the step-less height adjusting apparatus. 